GM warns it may be forced into bankruptcy

Reuters – General Motors Corp on Thursday said its auditors had raised "substantial doubt" about its ability to survive outside bankruptcy if it fails to stem its losses and stop burning cash.

The "going concern" warning from the struggling U.S. automaker had been expected, but underscored the stakes for GM as it seeks up to $30 billion in U.S. government aid to restructure outside a court-supervised bankruptcy process.

GM’s shares dropped 15 percent to $1.87 in premarket trading.

GM said its creditors had agreed to waive a requirement that could have allowed them to force the automaker to repay more than $6 billion in loans because of the warning in order to allow GM to press its case for government aid.